SCOTT SIMON, HOST:
President Trump has never won the state of Minnesota, but Mike Lindell of MyPillow fame is running for governor there on a Trump-forward platform and leads some polls. Dana Ferguson from Minnesota Public Radio News saw Mike Lindell at the annual Farmfest trade show this week, where candidates made their pitch.
DANA FERGUSON, BYLINE: While other candidates in the barn-like building dressed in jeans and T-shirts, Mike Lindell was in a dark suit and red tie. And he name-dropped his friend in the White House.
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MIKE LINDELL: I have an advantage over everyone up here. I can call up and work with the president of the United States.
FERGUSON: Lindell is a longtime Trump ally who joined the president in denying the results of the 2020 election, getting sued for defamation by voting machine companies - one case settled, one ongoing. Trump lost Minnesota in his presidential runs. His administration has targeted the state for Medicaid cuts and let the immigration enforcement surge that left two observers dead. So when he gave his powerful endorsement to Lindell for governor, it was a problem for the party establishment that had endorsed someone else at its May convention.
PREYA SAMSUNDAR: It's really not shocking to see that he has bucked the party in their endorsement process by choosing someone that he's got a close, personal relationship with.
FERGUSON: That's Republican political strategist Preya Samsundar.
SAMSUNDAR: I think it's more surprising that he did not choose a candidate who had an ability to win statewide.
FERGUSON: The state party chair has raised questions about Lindell's residency. A former party leader resurfaced allegations Lindell physically abused a former girlfriend. Lindell's long denied that and says his residency is in order. He says the party leaders want him to lose.
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LINDELL: It's a coordinated attack. It started when I got the president's endorsement.
FERGUSON: Mary Jo Kukacka (ph) came to pick up a Lindell yard sign from the campaign's booth.
MARY JO KUKACKA: Thank you.
UNIDENTIFIED PERSON: You're welcome.
FERGUSON: She says she's backing Lindell because he has Trump's seal of approval. And...
KUKACHKA: He's an honest individual, and he's not your typical politician, promising you all kinds of stuff and not delivering. He's not a polished spokesperson.
FERGUSON: Back in the pavilion, Lindell's competitors talked about change, like Kendall Qualls, who did get the party convention's endorsement.
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KENDALL QUALLS: When I was on active duty as an artillery officer, when the conventional forces couldn't get it done, we brought in the special forces. We brought in something different. This is why we need different leadership in a state today.
FERGUSON: Candidate Lisa Demuth touts her work leading a tied Minnesota House of Representatives as its speaker.
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LISA DEMUTH: Absolutely everything that we passed over the last two years had to be bipartisan. We have proven that we can do that here in Minnesota, and as your next governor, my proof is that I can lead this state.
FERGUSON: Also on stage was the Republicans' likely Democratic opponent in the fall, Senator Amy Klobuchar.
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AMY KLOBUCHAR: We do not need a governor who is a rubber stamp of Donald Trump. We need a governor who is going to put you first, who's going to put Minnesota first.
FERGUSON: She chastised the Republican candidates for all failing to oppose Trump on tariffs, immigration policies and the war in Iran.
For NPR News, I'm Dana Ferguson in Morgan, Minnesota. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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